Another Flyer Attempts to Open Emergency Exit Mid-Flight

A 44-year-old man became the latest in a string of passengers to make a fruitless attempt to open an emergency exit door while a commercial aircraft was in the air.

The only possible upside of the recent rash of passengers trying to exit commercial flights before landing is as a valuable public service advisory. As news of the latest attempt to open a plane door in-flight makes headlines, there is now an almost universal understanding among flyers that the exit doors on commercial aircraft will not open in-flight.

On Monday, a 44-year-old Romanian became the latest to try his hand at opening an aircraft door in-flight. According to a report in the Daily Mail, the Air Europa passenger traveling on a flight from Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI) to Ibiza Airport (IBZ) is believed to have been trying to harm himself when he tried to open the plane’s emergency exit mid-air. The passenger was eventually subdued and was restrained for the remainder of the flight.

Earlier this week, a Capital Airlines passenger made a similar attempt to open the plane door in-flight. Authorities say the passenger involved in this incident was also believed to be attempting self-harm rather than making a serious attempt to cause an air disaster. Last month, Serbian investigators say a passenger aboard a Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt Airport (FRA) to Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport (BEG) attempted to enter the flight deck and threatened to open an emergency exit door if he was not allowed into the cockpit. A few weeks earlier, in November, an unruly flyer tried to open the cabin door of a British Airways flight from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS).

Also in December, American Airlines called the police on a passenger who made a poorly timed joke about opening the emergency exit while flying from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to Chicago O’ Hare International Airport (ORD).

[Photo: Wikipedia]